The recent San Joaquin grand jury report made headlines. Still, some of the outrageous misconduct in that report failed to get the attention such behavior deserves.

The jurors issued a scalding report last week on the recruitment of Stockton's city manager. The process, supposedly confidential, was compromised by numerous illegal leaks.

OK, so we heard already that the leaks could have gotten the city sued for millions; and these violations torpedoed an expensive hiring process (the leading candidate withdrew).

What was not emphasized - well, to fully appreciate it, read again the public statement on the leaks by the head of the police union, Kathryn Nance.

"All members of the council knew and were aware that the names of the city manager candidates were known by a number of members of the public weeks in advance of the Mayor's disclosure," Nance wrote in an email. "Yet none had taken any action, either in open or closed session to address this concern or take steps to address the disclosure."

A fact unmentioned in this scrupulous rebuke is found on page 9 of the grand jury report.

It says, "Another council member indicated he or she had received a text from a leader within the Stockton Police Officer's Association who indicated the names of the two finalists and that the Association was in favor of the Mayor's preferred candidate."

So a leader of the SPOA was receiving leaks, but the leader of the SPOA denounced leaks. Surely the annals of chutzpah hold a place for these people.

Nance did not return calls for comment.

The grand jury added, "...the majority of those individuals identified as having contacted Council Members on this issue, are known to be supporters of the mayor. ..."

The grand jury's implication is clear: In all likelihood, Mayor Anthony Silva violated the Brown Act in two ways. Stampeding out to blurt the news to a TV reporter, and leaking the names of the finalists to public safety unions.

"An e-mail was sent to one Council Member from a Stockton Firefighters' Association leader," the grand jury wrote. "The individual indicated his support of the Mayor's preferred candidate. ..."

And yes, the report criticized council members, too. But in such passages as the one above, the grand jury made it clear they considered the mayor Culprit Number One.

This is a perfect illustration why closed-session confidentiality is in the public interest. Knowing the finalists' identities gave the unions a leg up on the selection process.

They could lobby council members for the most union-friendly candidate. They could angle to influence the process while you were locked out of the room.

Not to mention that Silva demonstrated yet again that he thinks the rules are for chumps. Or - if only I were kidding - he simply cannot understand them.

The grand jury discovered the mayor has a cadre of volunteers working for him at City Hall. Seven or eight have access to city computers.

But the grand jury could not determine if the mayor's volunteers accessed confidential files. Why? "The Mayor was unable to name his volunteers and did not provide those names to the grand jury when requested to do so."

In other words, Silva refused to cooperate with the grand jury.

Finally, the grand jury said the mayor tried to hijack the hiring process.

"While the Mayor has expressed the opinion that he is given the authority to select the city manager, the Charter's language clearly states that the mayor nominates a candidate ...but the final decision rests with the entire City Council."

Silva responded with a statement. "I don't agree with everything in the report as it is not 100% accurate; however I will respect the findings of the grand jury and move forward with restoring our City."

Perfect. He refuses to give the grand jury the facts, then he criticizes it for not getting the facts straight. He disrespects the grand jury, but he respects its findings.

On with restoring the city ... to union control.

Contact columnist Michael Fitzgerald at (209) 546-8270 or michaelf@recordnet.com. Follow him at recordnet.com/fitzgeraldblog and on Twitter @stocktonopolis.